


No Gods or Kings

by reckless_indulgence



Series: When the World Ends [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Begging, Bondage, Crying, Dark, Fantasy, Gags, Goddesses, Hurt/Comfort, Intercrural Sex, M/M, Magic, Magical Bond, Manipulation, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Original Fiction, Other, Rough Sex, Royalty, Sadism, Series, Shapeshifting, ruined orgasm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:47:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25796119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reckless_indulgence/pseuds/reckless_indulgence
Summary: Solomon struggles with his new life. Nox doesn't understand why he refuses to stand up for himself. Both begin to settle into their relationship as the past is slowly explained.
Relationships: Original Male Character/Original Male Character, Original Male Character/Original Nonbinary Character
Series: When the World Ends [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1865647
Kudos: 13





	1. Drumroll

_The violet stones embedded in the ring began to glow as soon as he put it on, faintly at first and then bright enough to blind. Solomon covered his eyes, waiting until the light faded to look again._

_There was a person standing in front of him where no one had been before. He was frozen as he stared up at them and they stared back. Their eyes were so dark that he thought they might be black, and when they looked him over, it made him feel like an animal caught in a trap. They were very tall and thin, though he could see muscle under the simple gray shirt and leggings they wore. Their black hair fell just to their chin in length, and they didn’t bother pushing it back when it fell into their face. Sharp claws tipped each of their fingers, but the prince thought he would have known they weren’t human even without them. The beast smiled, and their teeth were sharp and white._

_“You must be my new master. My name is Nox, and I am at your service.”_

_Two months later_

Life in the tunnels was different from anything the prince had experienced in the palace. The survivors made friends in small groups and tolerated others. No one wanted to be near Solomon and his giant, obviously feral wolf, but that kept him safe, so he didn’t mind. (It also kept him _lonely,_ which he minded significantly more, but he had Nox, even if they weren’t the best company.) No one would figure out who he was if no one wanted to get to know him.

A dwarf named Bryn had taken charge of the survivors before Solomon even arrived. She wasn’t kind, but she was fair, and as a former general, she was a brilliant tactician. It didn’t take long for even the most troublesome members of the group to begin obeying her, and as new survivors became fewer and fewer, it seemed they would settle with Bryn as their leader.

At least until three humans came to the forest, lasting less than a day in the tunnels before they began protesting being led by a dwarf. They were proud knights of Mahzia, and they wouldn’t obey a member of an inferior race. The survivors sat in the large meeting room to discuss the situation, becoming heated as they all began suggesting different leaders. Then, one of the newcomers saw Solomon and, to his horror, _recognized_ him. He had been lucky so far that no one else had, but these people had been in the palace. They knew the blue eyes and golden blond hair of the royal family. He may not be as physically impressive as his father or as beautiful as his mother, but it was still clear where he came from.

“Prince Solomon,” the knight said, and every eye in the room was on the boy in an instant. “You survived.”

Solomon already had a hand on Nox’s fur, the wolf laying beside his chair at the table. Now, his grip tightened as panic made his heart race. “No, I - I’m not—”

“Thank Eires,” another of the men said. “She must have protected you to give you a chance to take back our nation. You will lead us.”

“No—”

“Are you insane?” Valerius, a lizardfolk that Solomon had met briefly in passing, jumped to his feet. “ _This_ is the son of the man who _doomed_ us, and you want to put him in power now? We should be executing him!”

Solomon jumped when the man slammed his fist on the table, shrinking back in his chair. Nox was tense under his hand, their head lifted now as they listened intently to the argument.

One of the knights, the one who had first recognized the prince, leapt up and reached for the sword at her waist. “Lay a hand on the prince, and you will be struck down, _worm._ ”

The room erupted in chaos, some calling for the prince’s head and very few speaking in his defense. It was the loud crash of Bryn’s hammer against the stone table that finally silenced them.

“That is enough.” Her voice was low and gruff, and the note of command kept everyone quiet as they listened. “The world is no longer ours. Those of us who made it here are not princes or knights or peasants. We are, all of us, simply survivors.” She gazed around the room, not angry or threatening but stern. The people who were still standing began to sit down. “Now. If a consensus is reached on another leader, I will, of course, step down. But surely, we can come to an understanding without weapons and threats.”

There was quiet before one of the knights spoke again, calmer now. “The fact that a member of the royal family survived _must_ be a sign from Eires,” she said, and there was a desperate hope in her voice that made the prince’s heart sink. “If there is any chance at all that we may reclaim Mahzia—”

“There isn’t.” Solomon hated drawing their attention again, but he sat with his shoulders straight and his head held up even if he couldn’t bring himself to meet their eyes. “Mahzia is gone.”

“But if Eires protected you—”

“She didn’t. I survived because I ran away. I was a _coward,_ and then I was _lucky,_ and if Eires is real at all, she wants nothing to do with me.”

There were many in the room that had agreed with the idea of executing him, but only Valerius laughed at his confession. Even the former knights didn’t come to the prince’s defence this time. Maybe it wasn’t the best thing for him to say for his own sake, but it was the truth. He wouldn’t try to convince them not to hate him when he believed they were in the right.

Solomon was quiet for the rest of the discussion. It took a few hours of debate, but Bryn was almost unanimously agreed upon as their leader. She accepted the position with all the seriousness of someone who understood what it meant to be in charge.

~~

“Such a pretty thing. Don’t struggle now.”

Solomon wasn’t sure he could if he tried. He had allowed himself to be put in this position, his hands tied behind his back as he lay naked on the bed. The only thing he hadn’t allowed was the gag, but he wasn’t given a moment to protest before it was tied around his head. His stomach sank when it occurred to him almost immediately that he couldn’t deny the beast if he couldn’t speak. Nox had covered his mouth before, but something about this felt so much more deliberate.

Nox’s fingers brushed his stiff cock, already dripping against his soft stomach from the careful attention they had been giving it for the past several minutes. Their touch was so light and gentle, a caress he could barely feel at all, as their other hand held him to the bed, casually ignoring how he jerked and whined. “Even little boys like to be touched, hm? Just a little though, just enough for a taste. I wouldn’t want to be cruel and get you _too_ excited.”

Solomon whined behind the gag as the beast dragged one finger up the length of his cock, stopping just before reaching the head. _Gods,_ their hands were so warm. There was nothing he could do to escape the gentle touch, barely pleasurable but still forcing his arousal higher until his entire body ached with need. It was _torture_ (but it took his mind away from the day. He couldn’t be mentally reliving that conversation in the meeting room if he couldn’t think at all.)

“Oh, my prince.” Nox’s voice was a low growl, the sound of their arousal familiar enough now that it made his stomach tighten painfully. “You seem to enjoy your own suffering as much as I do. I wonder what your people would think of you now? I know your goddess would be _disgusted_.” They’re thumb passed over the tip of his cock, smearing through the precum gathered there in a rough slide that made the boy tense with a sharp gasp.

Solomon’s breath escaped him in a broken cry that was barely muffled by the gag, but Nox’s hand had already left his cock to clamp firmly over his mouth. It didn’t matter now though; Solomon’s entire body was still tense as his cock pulsed and striped his belly with cum. He struggled, sobbing as he reached a climax that only brought him pain. When it was over, he slumped against the bed, trembling and crying.

A low growl came from Nox as the beast forced his head back, their grip on his face harsh and painful. He expected their teeth in his throat before he felt them, but the pain joined the sensitivity already taking over his body, and he was sure the sound that tore from him would have woken his neighbors on either side if it wasn’t for the heavy, clawed hand over his mouth.

“Gods, I can _taste_ your suffering,” Nox said, a moan on the edge of their breath as they panted against him. “I forgot how easily the young ones can be made to spend. Well, you got what you wanted so badly. Did it feel good, my prince?” They laughed, and he nearly choked on a fresh wave of tears.

Nox groaned as they pushed themself back to kneel beside him. “Don’t worry now, I know you aren’t finished. So full of youthful energy — I’m sure you could finish five or six times before getting tired, hm?” Their hand still held his head firmly in place; even if he thought they would listen, he couldn’t argue.

It was a surprise when they flipped him over. Solomon didn’t struggle as he was forced to his knees with his cheek pressed against the rough fabric covering of the mattress. He knew what was coming when Nox used a strip of cloth to tie his thighs together just above the knee. They held him by his hips as they forced their cock into the tight space between his thighs, and it wasn’t long before they were pounding into him.

Solomon couldn’t stop crying. Their claws were digging into his hips, the tight restraints rubbed his wrists and thighs raw, and their cock hit his sore balls with each thrust. He was pushed into the rough covering of the mattress again and again, the friction of it burning on his knees, his chest, the sensitive skin of his nipples. All he could do was cry and pray for it to be over soon.

Nox grabbed his bound hands and pulled until his back was pressed to their chest. They bit the back of his neck as their hands ran down over his chest. “Look at you,” they growled. “ _Disgusting_. Crying and throwing tantrums like an infant. What do you have to say for yourself?”

When the gag was pulled out of his mouth, still wet with his spit as it was left to hang around his neck, Solomon gasped, only realizing now how shallow his breathing had become. “I’m sorry.” His voice was thick and shaking, and he felt Nox’s growl of pleasure at the sound. “Please, please, it _hurts_.”

His cries only made Nox move faster, now lifting and dropping the boy by his hips as they thrust into his thighs. The pain didn’t fade, but to Solomon’s horror, he felt the return of his earlier arousal. His cock began to harden and twitch, and just as the feeling of Nox’s thrusts began to feel good, they stopped, pulling him close against them. He felt their cock pulse as a second rush of sticky cum coated his thighs, spilling over his own balls.

Nox laid down, pulling the boy with them so they lay on their side with him pressed against their chest, his head tucked under their chin. He was trembling as they sighed contentedly, and they shushed him with a chiding tone. “You really do cry over everything, hm? Don’t think I don’t see how hard you are again. You _like_ what I do to you.”

Solomon couldn’t do anything to cover himself, still bound and held tightly against them. They were warm behind him, and they stroked his side with one palm until his crying began to subside as he relaxed.

“There. Feeling better?”

“Nox, I…” Now was his moment. The beast was waiting for him to speak, and he would only have to say the word. They would have to let him go; they couldn’t touch him like this ever again if he ordered it. But… “Am I really disgusting to you?”

Nox paused and then sighed, almost sounding disappointed. “Not to me, my prince,” they said. “I’m sure it’s true that your people and goddess would think so, but I only say it because I see how you twitch when I degrade you. The more aroused you are, the more you suffer.”

“Why do you like hurting me so much?”

“Hmm.” Nox’s hand moved from his side to his hair, and he nearly melted into the soothing, rhythmic touch. “I have always found pleasure and satisfaction in ripping apart my enemies and then the enemies of my masters. In fact, I am often locked away in my ring during times of peace. But you keep me here, keep me on guard but not let me use my claws. It’s terribly unsatisfying.”

“But I have to. I - I need you.”

“I know. This isn’t a punishment, my prince, it’s a _responsibility._ You are welcome to stop me at any time, as long as you accept my misery on your head.”

Solomon closed his eyes. He was a burden to everyone here, even to his own magical servant. If he could make up for that even a little by letting this happen, if he could have use to someone…

“Can we be done for now?” he asked quietly.

“Fine,” Nox said. “You may rest.”

The restraints were removed, and then they were rolling to the other side of the bed. Solomon turned over, ignoring how his body ached at the movement, and reached out to grab their arm with a hand that was still regaining circulation. “Nox, will… will you hold me?” He winced when they turned back to look at him, releasing them immediately. “It’s not an order. Just… please?”

Nox looked at him for another moment before moving closer again. They pulled him against them, this time letting him lay his head on their chest. Solomon relaxed immediately, a shuddering breath of relief that bordered on a sob escaping him. It felt so good to have someone touch him when they weren’t causing him pain or threatening his life. He didn’t realize how much he needed it until Nox was holding him.

“I forget how fragile humans can be,” they said quietly, stroking his hair again. “Pain without comfort will only break you fully, and I would prefer to keep you whole.”

Solomon was quiet for a moment. Sleep was pulling at him now that the pain and adrenaline had left him so sore and exhausted. Still, he fought the feeling for a few minutes, building up the courage to speak again, his voice quiet as he asked, “Nox… do you hate me?”

Nox sighed, but they didn’t sound especially put out. “No, of course not. I actually quite enjoy your company when you aren’t whining about protecting every life but your own. Now, go to sleep.”

Solomon closed his eyes and fell asleep almost immediately.


	2. Crescendo

_ “I don’t understand.” _

_ Nox sighed. They had been enthusiastic at first, but now they looked at him with an annoyed sort of determination. He wondered vaguely if he was already a disappointment to them. _

_ “I have no choice but to follow your orders.” They didn’t seem happy to be explaining themself again so soon. “I am cursed to obey whoever wears the ring for the remainder of their life.” _

_ Solomon looked down at the ring on his finger. His skin still tingled with whatever magic he had stirred by trying to remove the jewelry. He didn’t like the feeling very much. _

_ “The moment you put my ring on, you became my master,” Nox continued. “There is nothing you can do to change this. All you can do now is make use of me.” _

_ “How? What do I… use you for?” _

_ “That is your decision.” The beast tilted their head, looking him over with a mean smirk that he didn’t quite know how to interpret. “Of course, those before you have mostly used me for combat. Simply tell me who your enemies are, and I will tear them to pieces.” _

_ Solomon stared at them for a moment before finally forcing himself to shake his head. “No, I… I don’t want you to kill anyone.” _

_ Nox’s smile fell, and their dark eyes narrowed. The way they were looking at him now made the prince wonder if they were telling the truth about being unable to kill him. “If you aren’t going to have me slaughter those who stand against you, then what, exactly, will you use me for?  _ Master. _ ” _

_ Solomon didn’t know how to answer that. _

Life in the tunnels was only worse now that everyone knew who Solomon was. No one would touch him as long as Nox was at his side, but the other survivors’ apathy toward him had changed to contempt. Some didn’t treat him any differently, like Bryn or the few other dwarves, but the lizardfolk were openly hostile if he stepped anywhere close to them. They always backed away again when the wolf growled, but it was a lizardfolk warrior named Illian who finally crossed the line.

“Why are you here?” They were in the dining hall, a very large common room that the dwarves had designed to fit many more people than currently lived with them, just in case. The extra space was useful to Solomon, who avoided the other survivors almost as much as they avoided him, but it wasn’t helping him now. Illian loomed over him, leaning against the table to glare down at the prince.

A quick glance around the room told Solomon that no one who would normally step in (not for his sake, of course, but for their continued survival as a group) was currently in the room. Of course, Nox would stop anyone from killing him, but they weren’t going to protect him from verbal attacks.

“It doesn’t look like you have any useful skills  _ at all, _ ” Illian was saying. “You don’t fight, you don’t hunt. Why do we let you live here?”

“That’s not true,” Solomon said. He could practically feel everyone looking at him now, making his heart race and his face feel warm. “I, um, I bring things for the healers, potion components. And I hunt! I’m contributing.” He might not be very good at hunting, but he  _ did _ have skills. “If you have such a problem with me being here, talk to Bryn.”

He wasn’t sure where the flash of courage came from, but it was  _ gone _ a moment later when Illian grabbed a handful of his shirt and yanked him to his feet. “None of us are rulers anymore, isn’t that what Bryn said?” the lizardfolk man hissed. “I don’t bow to her. Maybe I should just kill you myself, stop the drain on our resources, huh?”

A few people in the room called out for him to stop. One human even got to her feet, but before she could take a step, a low, dark growl filled the room, and everyone froze. Nox had been sleeping half under the table and behind the prince’s chair, but now they stood, rising to their full height at the level of Solomon’s chest. (He would swear they used some magic to change their size because they hadn’t seemed so big a moment ago, laying by his feet.)

Illian dropped him immediately, and Solomon fell back into the chair as his legs shook too much to hold him up. He knew he had been safe the whole time, of course he didn’t forget about his protector, but that didn’t mean the death threat wasn’t terrifying.

The lizardfolk man took a step back, but Nox followed him, dark eyes still focused on the threat. “Call off your dog!” he snapped.

Solomon winced but didn’t argue. “Nox,” he said, but the wolf didn’t back down as they normally would. “Nox, that’s enough, it - it’s fine, okay?”

“I thought you had your beast under control. Isn’t that what you told Bryn?”

”I do, I… Nox,  _ come on _ .”

A sharp growl came from the wolf, and then they were transforming. Nox had never shown their human form to the other survivors, and there were a few gasps around the room. Nox ignored them entirely, turning to face the prince, and Solomon shrunk back in his chair. “You cannot seriously tell me to back down now,” Nox said. “It is one thing to say that I can’t tear these people apart for their clumsy attempts at veiled threats, but this was an  _ attempt _ on your life. Are you really going to tell me to let this  _ go?” _

Solomon hesitated before slowly nodding. He couldn’t just let Nox kill the man (another person dying because of him was  _ not _ an option), but that didn’t mean he wanted to be the focus of their wrath. He held his breath as Nox glared down at him, waiting. It wasn’t a relief when they turned sharply and left the room, though he knew they were still angry. He would still have to deal with the fallout, even if it wasn’t in front of everyone.

Illian was smirking and looked ready to say something, but Solomon stood before he could speak, leaving a tray of barely-touched food on the table for whoever would claim it first. Nox hadn’t said a word, but he knew they would be in the room the two of them shared. The prince only made it past the curtain that covered the entrance before they froze him with a calculating glare.

“Explain yourself,” they said sharply. “Why do you allow these people to threaten you?”

Solomon folded his arms, hoping he didn’t look as lost as he felt. “You stopped him,” he said. “You always do. Isn’t that enough?”

“And how many more times will I have to stop him? Or any of them? So many of these people wish for your death.”

“I don’t care.”

Nox’s dark eyes narrowed, seeming to study him as if there was some mystery to be uncovered. The prince didn’t know what they were looking for, but he didn’t like it. “You’re lying,” they said, not a question or an accusation but a statement of fact. “This isn’t the first time you have allowed them to demean and threaten you. If you refuse to kill them, the least you could do is discourage them. All you do is beg for forgiveness from these people when you owe them no apology.”

“Of course I do!” He didn’t know where it came from, but he was so angry, and he let it pour out of him because he was sure he’d go back to being frozen in fear if he stopped now. “Nox, I ran away. I abandoned my family, my people,  _ everything. _ My father is the reason that the  _ fucking world ended _ . If these people didn’t want me dead after all of that, I’d say there’s something wrong with them. Even my own goddess wants nothing to do with me, and why would she? All I’ve done is dishonor her with my cowardice.”

Nox stared at him for a long moment before slowly shaking their head. “That’s what this is about, is it?”

Solomon took a shuddering breath that burned in his chest, and his anger didn’t disappear but turned inward again, leaving him abruptly too tired to stand. He sat heavily on their bed, not looking at the shape-shifter. “Eires hates nothing more than a coward,” he said quietly. “She’s going to judge me harshly. And… she’ll be right to, Nox. All of this is my fault. If I had just stayed, if I had  _ fought, _ maybe…”

“You would be dead now.”

“A dead warrior is better than a living coward.”

Nox sighed heavily, and then they were sitting beside him and pulling him down to lay on the bed. After the last time he had asked to be held, they had started offering comfort without asking or waiting to be told he needed it. “Eires is a brilliant tactician, and she should be respected for her military genius and strength,” they said. “But she should never be  _ praised. _ She is more ruthless and cruel than even I am, and she requires her people to live in constant fear of her judgment, ruling over them as an immortal tyrant. I may be a monster, but I have never forced loyalty. Trust me on this, my prince, you are better off leaving her behind.”

Solomon laid his head on their shoulder but couldn’t relax. It was only when Nox began to stroke his hair that the tension finally left him. “You talk like you know her personally,” he said.

“Mm. I do.”

The prince looked up, eyes wide. “You mean… you’ve met Eires? In person?”

“More than that,” Nox said casually. “I fought her.” They sighed when Solomon only stared at them expectantly, surprising him by tousling his hair to push his bangs into his eyes. It felt strangely playful for the beast. “Eires is the one who cursed me.”

Solomon pushed his hair back so he could see again but didn’t protest when Nox tugged him to lay back down on their chest. He curled into them and closed his eyes. “Why did she curse you?”

“As I said, we fought. I planned to destroy her and take her nation. I went against my own goddess’s wishes to try, so when I failed, I was left at the mercy of Eires. I’m sure you can guess how that went.”

Solomon couldn’t decide how to feel about his servant (and the closest thing he had to a  _ friend _ here) being an enemy of the goddess he had prayed to all his life. It should have been horrifying, but after everything that had happened in the past few months, he couldn’t find it in himself to be afraid. After everything he had done already, could he even make Eires any more angry?

“Who was your goddess?” the prince asked.

Nox hummed. “Sercei,” they said, and he had never heard them sound  _ wistful _ before. He wasn’t sure what it meant. “Have you heard of her?” When he shook his head, they continued. “Sercei is powerful, unbending, and fiercely loyal. Her worshippers are free to do as we wish, though we take our own fate into our hands by going against her wishes. There is no traditional punishment, as there would be with a god like Eires, but she left me to face the consequences of my decision without her protection. And I am still facing them centuries later.”

“That’s awful,” Solomon said quietly.

It wasn’t quite a laugh, more a breathy huff of amusement, but it sounded nothing like the cruel chuckle the prince was used to hearing from them. Their hand in his hair stilled as if they had surprised even themself, but then they were petting him again. “Worshippers of Sercei have complete freedom over our own lives,” they said. “I made my choice with the knowledge that my failure would be on my own head.”

“Do you… regret it?”

“Of course. Eires took what I valued most: my freedom. And more than that, she removed any hope of speaking to my goddess. I can’t reach her as long as I am bound by Eires’s magic.”

Solomon frowned and pushed himself up again. He caught the way Nox’s eyes seemed to focus on something he couldn’t see, the expression on their face the closest to something human that he had ever seen. It was gone in an instant when they realized he was looking, replaced by a curious amusement, but he knew what he had seen. He didn’t think before he spoke. “There has to be a way to break the curse,” he said. “Isn’t that how magic works? There has to be a loophole. Maybe I can help.”

Nox stared at him, eyes wide. Solomon didn’t think he had ever truly surprised the beast before, and then they laughed. It wasn’t a cruel thing or a quiet breath of amusement but an actual  _ laugh. _ The sound was low, similar in tone to their growl but much more pleasant to hear. Solomon realized with some concern that he was staring (and already wondering how he could hear that laugh again soon).

“You are never going to be the type of warrior that my previous masters were, are you?” Nox shushed him when he tensed, pulling him close again. “What would make you want to help  _ me, _ my prince? It seems I do nothing but hurt you.”

“I let you,” Solomon pointed out. He was grateful to be laying on their chest again, not looking up as he spoke quietly. “And… I guess it’s stupid, but I - I like you. I know you have to keep me alive, but you don’t have to comfort me. I never ordered you to hold me like this or talk to me about Eires or anything. I think… maybe you like me too. A little.” His face was burning with embarrassment, and he was rambling, trying to justify himself before Nox could laugh at him. “I mean, sure, you’re kind of cruel sometimes, but that’s just how you are. You said you don’t hate me before, so it must not be personal, right? You just… need it.”

“Mm. Well, you’re mostly right.”

He didn’t have time to question that before Nox was rolling over, pushing onto his back as they leaned over him. Their dark eyes studied his face, and he felt his heartbeat begin to pick up. One of their hands was on his chest, over his heart, and they smiled.

“You see, there is one thing you’re wrong about.” Their voice was low, making him shiver as they leaned down to kiss his neck, surprisingly gentle. “I cause you pain because it drives me mad to go without. But more than just your suffering, I enjoy  _ you _ . Seeing you cry, hearing you  _ beg, _ and oh, your face when you  _ cum _ , my prince…” They growled, and he gasped when he felt teeth, still on the pleasurable side of pain. “I don’t believe I have ever been bound to someone I so enjoyed touching. This is  _ definitely  _ personal.”

Their hand was under his shirt, stroking slowly up and down. Solomon felt his stomach tighten every time their fingers neared his waist, but they never went lower. He turned his head to give Nox better access to his neck, their hot tongue and sharp teeth already making him whimper and moan pathetically fast. He wondered, through a haze of lust slowing his thoughts, if he was becoming more sensitive the more often Nox denied him relief. How long would it take before one touch would bring him to his knees?

Nox moved on from his neck, now following the path of their own hand with their mouth. They kissed and licked and bit his skin as they moved slowly down his body. When they finally reached his waist, their hands were already holding him tightly by the hips to stop his helpless squirming. They pressed their lips to his lower stomach, smirking as his muscles tensed with each kiss, and he almost wished they would just sink their teeth in because it would be less painful than the gentle touch of their lips. It felt like he was burning from the inside out, and they could make it better so easily with just one touch, but all they did was kiss him.

“Oh, fuck,  _ fuck. _ ” Solomon couldn’t stop himself from struggling, though it did nothing to free him. There was no give to their grip, not even the pain of their claws in his skin because they had hidden them away at some point. “Please? I need - Nox,  _ please. _ ”

The beast hummed, and their hands moved from his hips to his thighs, still holding him tightly to the bed. “You’re so pretty when you beg, master,” they said, sending him a smile that made him shiver all over. “It’s so terribly cruel of me to make you  _ want  _ so much when I don’t plan to let you  _ have _ .” The prince let out a shuddering breath, not yet in tears but close, and they laughed quietly. “You know, my prince…” They were on their knees between his legs, looking up at him as they said, “you only need to say the word. I am bound by your will, after all.”

Solomon whimpered and closed his eyes, suddenly unsure if he could resist temptation while looking at them. He wanted Nox to touch him more than he thought he had ever wanted  _ anything,  _ but he took a deep breath and shook his head. “No, I - I  _ can't.” _ He felt their hands move over his thighs, stroking up and down and so  _ close _ to where he needed them, and his whine was high and desperate. “Nox, please  _ please, _ just touch me, I’ll do whatever you  _ want, _ I—”

“Oh?” Their hands stopped moving, and he forced his eyes open again. Nox was sitting back on their heels, but now they moved, leaning over him with their hand beside his head for balance. They touched his jaw, cupped his cheek, and he could only stare up at them as they held his gaze. “Make a deal with me.” Their voice was low, almost soft. Their thumb stroked his bottom lip, and he shivered. “The next time someone threatens you or treats you as if you should be afraid of them, you are going to remember that you are  _ my _ master. From the moment you put on my ring, my power became yours. You are not weak anymore, and you  _ will _ fight back.”

“But… Nox, I—”

“Shh.” One of their hands slipped down to his inner thigh, and Solomon gasped when their claws dug in. They didn’t draw blood, but it still hurt, and he felt his cock twitch from the sensation. “Not to kill. Not to make them fear you. You will make them understand that you are not a threat only because you do not  _ wish _ to be. You will make them respect you. And if you do…” Nox leaned closer and lowered their voice, reminding him of their growl in their other form. “I will touch you. No pain. No wasted cum. I will give you real, easy pleasure until you are fully satisfied. Now. Do we have a deal, master?”

**Author's Note:**

> please comment with any thoughts or corrections to my grammar. i appreciate feedback; if anything is confusing or doesn't make sense to you, i would really like to know so i can improve.


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